1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to home network technology, and more particularly, to a system and method for providing phone related services to devices using Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) on a home network.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a home network includes an Internet Protocol (IP) based private network, which connects diverse devices, such as all types of Personal Computers (PC), intelligent products, wireless devices, etc., which are used in a home, to one network through a common virtual computing environment that control the devices, often referred to as “middleware”.
Middleware enables communication between diverse digital devices by connecting the devices in a peer-to-peer manner. Specific examples of middleware currently include Home Audio Video (AV) Interoperability (HAVI), UPnP, Java Intelligent Network Infra-structure (Jini), and Home Wide Web (HWW).
In a computing environment constructed through the UPnP middleware, i.e., a UPnP network, the respective devices included therein may be allocated with addresses from a server in accordance with a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) or addresses selected by an Automatic IP designation function (Auto IP).
The UPnP network is a home network technology that is frequently used, and defines a UPnP device, a UPnP service, and a protocol between them. The UPnP network includes a Controlled Device (CD), which is a home network device that is connected to an IP based home network to be controlled, and a Control Point (CP) that is a device for controlling the CD. The CP is a device that controls the CD, and is a constituent element that requests and receives an event. The CD is a device that performs a determined function in accordance with a request of the CP, and is a constituent element that sends the event to the CP that has requested the event when the state of the CD is changed.
A basic operation process between devices of a conventional UPnP network includes an advertisement process, a discovery process, a description process, a control process, and an eventing process.
In the advertisement process, a new CD is connected to a home network and informs other devices on the home network of the new CD. In the discovery process, a new CP is connected to the home network and searches controlled devices, which operate on the home network.
In the description process, the CP, in order to control the CDs, obtains detailed function information for a newly added device by parsing service description eXtensible Markup Language (XML) file or a device description XML file through an IP address of the CD that is obtained in the discovery process.
In the control process, when the CP intends to provide a specified service through the CD, the CP transfers, i.e., transmits, a control message (i.e., action request) for requesting the specified message to the corresponding CD using a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), in accordance with a UPnP device architecture. In response to the request, the CP receives a response message (i.e., result, variable value) from the CD.
The eventing process confirms an information change state of the CD, which has provided the specified service, using a control command that is transferred from the CP. In UPnP telephony technology, which can transfer received call data to a home device and enable a user to make a call using the home device and the above-described UPnP technology, the UPnP telephony architecture includes a telephony terminal that receives a phone call from the outside, a home electronic device that is transferred with phone data, and a CP that controls the two devices.
The CP can control the functions of the telephony terminal and the electronic device using the network, and controls a connection between two devices and media session establishment.
However, the current telephony technology assumes a single user, and has been designed so that when a single user uses multiple electronic devices, the respective electronic devices transfer/receive only a single media type such as audio, video, etc.
Accordingly, there currently is no support for telephony technology when multiple users simultaneously transfer the same plural media using different electronic devices.
Conventionally, a call can be made using a home device, and when multiple electronic devices are provided at the home, a user can make a call using the multiple devices. However, although a channel for transferring media is formed between a telephony terminal and an electronic device to transfer audio and video, there is a problem that audio and video cannot be transferred among the multiple electronic devices.
For example, when a first user and a second user connect portable phones using multiple electronic devices, such as a TV at the home, and make phone calls with a third user through the portable phones, the first user and the second user can make phone calls with the third user, respectively, but it is impossible to make a phone call between the first user and the second user, and thus there is a problem that neither the first nor second user can hear or see the other party.